Certain beverage preparation machines use capsules containing ingredients to be extracted or to be dissolved and/or ingredients that are stored and dosed automatically in the machine or else are added at the time of preparation of the drink. Some beverage machines possess filling means that include a pump for liquid, usually water, which pumps the liquid from a source of water that is cold or indeed heated through heating means, e.g. a thermoblock or the like.
An example of a machine for preparing a beverage from a flavouring concentrate that is contained in a reservoir and that is mixed with a liquid from another reservoir is disclosed in US 2003/0200871.
Especially in the field of coffee preparation, machines have been widely developed in which a capsule containing beverage ingredients is inserted in a brewing device. The brewing device is tightly closed about the capsule, water is injected at the first face of the capsule, the beverage is produced in the closed volume of the capsule and a brewed beverage can be drained from a second face of the capsule and collected into a receptacle such as a cup or glass.
Brewing devices have been developed to facilitate insertion of a “fresh” capsule and removal of the capsule upon use. Typically, the brewing devices comprise two parts relatively movable from a configuration for inserting/removing a capsule to a configuration for brewing the ingredient in the capsule.
The actuation of the movable part of the brewing device may be motorized. Such a system is for example disclosed in EP 1 767 129 (also published as US 2013/032034). In this case, the user does not have to provide any manual effort to open or close the brewing device. The brewing device has a capsule insertion passage provided with a safety door assembled to the movable part of the brewing device via a switch for detecting an undesired presence of a finger in the passage during closure and prevent injuries by squeezing.
The actuation of the movable part of the brewing device may be manual. WO 2009/043630 (also published as US 2010/0288132) discloses a beverage preparation machine including a brewing unit having a front part with a passage having a mouth for inserting a capsule into the brewing unit. The front part is arranged to telescope out of the machine's housing for uncovering the passage for inserting a capsule into the brewing unit and telescopes into the brewing unit for sliding the passage under the housing and thus covering the passage by the housing. A pivotable arched handle is configured for driving the front part manually. In another embodiment, the telescoping front part is helicoidally movable about an axis perpendicular to the capsule insertion passage and parallel to the passage's mouth, the mouth of the passage being delimited by the telescoping front part and sliding with the front part under the machine's outermost housing by which it is covered in the closed position and uncovered in the open position.
WO 2005/004683 (also published as US 2006/0230941) and WO 2007/135136 (also published as US 2009/0308258) disclose a device comprising a frame, a fixed holding part for the capsule, a movable holding part which is mounted relative to the frame in a sliding relationship, one or two knuckle joint mechanisms that provide a mechanical system which enables to close in a steady and fluid-tight manner the holding parts about the capsule while also resisting to the counter-force acting while re-opening and generated by the internal brewing pressure, and a handle for directly levering the knuckle joint mechanism. Such a device forms a simple assembly enabling insertion of the capsule by vertical fall through a passage in the frame and removal of the used capsule in the same direction as the insertion direction. The handle is in the form of a lever that is manually pivotable about an end thereof adjacent the machine's housing. In the closed position, the handle may be pivoted down against the machine's housing and over the capsule inlet passage to cover it. In the open position, the handle is pivoted up away from the capsule inlet passage to uncover this passage. Hence, in addition to moving the holding part, the handle serves to cover and uncover the passage for the capsule. The manual force required to move the movable parts varies during closure and opening of the machine and depends on the dimensional tolerances of the capsules used, the positioning of the capsule and the temperature of the brewing unit.